Kainehe : Moʻolelo

Kainehe is mentioned in this excerpt from "He Moʻolelo kaʻao no Kekūhaupiʻo," by Rev. Stephen L. Desha the story of Kekūhaupiʻo, the famous warrior of the time of Kamehameha I. Click the link above to read the full moʻolelo!

The place of this battle called Koapāpa‘a is just a little ma uka of the house site where Mr. Horner formerly lived, and Pu‘upuhipaka is just a little ma kai of Mr. Horner’s place at Kūka‘iau. Kainehe is the land where the rock is, where Keōuakū‘ahu‘ula hid when he fled this Battle of Koapāpa‘a.This place where Keōuakū‘ahu‘ula hid until the very time that Kamehameha ascended above Mōkaulele, which is also inland of Pa‘auilo, is close to the spring of Waihālulu. This spring has extremely cold water and was a favorite of the Hāmākua ali‘i as well as the multitudes of this famous land.

Kamaʻāina Petition to Government for Homestead Land, 1890

In 1890, a group of kamaʻāina from Kainehe petitioned the Kingdom government to survey the remaining government lands in Kainehe (see 1870 map below), and to allow them to be granted kamaʻāina who were without ʻāina.

To His Excellency L. A. Kakina,Minister of the Interior Aloha to you,We, the people whose names are written on this petition to you, that you consent that the remaining parcel of ʻāina in Kainehe, Hāmākua, Hawaiʻi be surveyed as Hoʻokuleana ʻĀina (Homesteads). [We request this] because all of us are people without ʻāina, and with this we hope that are petition will be granted.

Hui Mālama i ke Ala ʻŪlili is a community-based nonprofit organization. Our mission is to re-establish the systems that sustain our community through educational initiatives and land-based practices that cultivate abundance, regenerate responsibilities, and promote collective health and well-being.